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Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Get Lost With Our Veterans!

Hi, folks! Veterans Day is here and it's always had a special place in my heart. From my days in high school (a looooooooong time ago), I've read about, learned about, and worked for our soldiers. When I was in college, I spent every Veterans Day in Washington, DC participating in activities to honor our soldiers. I originally wanted to write military heroes until I realized how many details I could easily screw up. So I left that work to those who are so much better, the ladies I'm showcasing below.

In my own book, Dance Away, Danger, the hero used to be in the Army. Since I don't know the specifics about Army life, I did the next best thing. I made Matt a former soldier, which helps with the suspense angle of the story. AMAZONBLURB:Sensible dance
instructor Tessa Gage likes her life organized, risk-free and on her own terms.
When her cop brother goes missing, his crooked partner tries to kill her, and a
handsome stranger claims he’s come to protect her, she’s forced to leave her
comfort zone. With more dance and business sense than survival skills and no
idea who to trust, Tessa has no choice but to rely on this man who’d
rather be anywhere but by her side.

When carefree
carpenter Matt Rylan gets a late night call from an Army buddy who once saved
his life, he finds himself where he never again wanted to be—responsible for
someone else. Honor demands Matt cooperate, but he never expects his
simple babysitting job to test the limits of his self-control. Nor does he
expect it to explode into a race against time for his very freedom.

As
Tessa and Matt get closer to the truth, and to each other, Tessa
learns to step outside the safety of her world to help set the wheels of justice
in motion. For Matt, supporting this courageous woman suddenly becomes
everything to him. Yet, his biggest challenge remains sharing his
closed-off heart with her before the danger silences them both forever.

AND NOW......SILVER JAMESlikes walks
on the wild side and coffee. Okay. She LOVES coffee. Warning: Her Muse, Iffy,
runs with scissors. A cowgirl at heart, she’s also been an Army officer’s wife
and mom, and has worked in the legal field, fire service, and law enforcement.
Now retired from the real world, she lives in Oklahoma and spends her days
writing with the assistance of her two Newfoundland dogs, the cat who rules them
all, and the myriad characters living in her imagination. www.silverjames.com

BLURB:The
HARD TARGET Team: Judge, jury, executioner. The multinational Hard Target
special operators hunt the worst of the worst, and each brings their own brand
of special to the mix. Genetically enhanced Navy SEALs. Wolf shifters from the
SAS and Irish Marines. An Israeli Oketz officer. And a team of former USAF
pilots and pararescue jumpers whose humanity doesn’t keep them from the fight.
All corralled by Mother Goose, who commands the undercover group with steel-toed
combat boots and cold beer.

Double-crossed…

Duke
Reagan’s mission went to hell. His SEAL teammates dead, abandoned by Command in
the middle of an African warlord’s territory, he’s wounded, blind, and on the
run with a terrified American, Coreen Prince, a doctor who was supposed to be
collateral damage. Somehow, they survive, but not before they lose a bit of
their hearts to each other.It
takes a year to restore Duke's vision, and the return of his sight comes with
the opportunity to join the Hard Target team, a not-quite white hat organization
doing what government coalitions can’t. His first mission as the team’s sniper
puts a drug cartel boss in his sights, but a familiar face that’s haunted Duke
since Africa crowds the scope.

Dr.
Coreen Prince struggled to put her life back together after her African ordeal,
but a slight detour one night in Key West offers her the chance to apologize to
the man who saved her at such great cost to himself. Too bad Duke didn't
recognize her.On
special assignment in South America, Cory once again finds herself in the wrong
place at the wrong time. But rescue comes from the last man she expects to see,
the one man she can’t forget. Will they get a second chance at love or will he
just see her as another double cross… AMAZON

ANNE WILSONlives just outside of
Phoenix with her husband and two children. She served nine years
active duty as a navy helicopter pilot, which included deployment to the
Persian Gulf. Never in her wildest imaginings did she think she would be a
writer one day, but now she’s found her passion. Her books are a combination of
romantic suspense, military thriller, and women’s fiction. Hover is her
debut novel. www.anneawilson.com

BLURB: Navy helicopter pilot Sara Denning wants nothing more
than to disappear into the uniform, but her talent at the controls make her a
stand out to Eric Marxen, a driven lieutenant with a few secrets of his own,
and uncovering them may lead her to actually finding herself. AMAZON

NANCY S. BRANDTis a stay-at-home mother of two children,
a daughter, 25, who is an appointment's clerk at an orthopedic clinic and an
editor and book reviewer; and a son, 12, who studies karate, and wants to be
either an historian or an artist. Nancy's husband, Steven, is also an author
and an adjunct professor of computer science at Louisiana State University.

In about sixth grade, an English teacher gave an assignment to write a
descriptive essay. Nancy's was all about a wonderful cave filled with diamonds,
emeralds and other precious gems. From that experience, she walked into every
English class hoping to get to write something, and she learned three things:

1. The difference between stalactite and stalagmite,
2. That fantasy was probably the genre she should concentrate on, and
3. Never end a story with "It was all a dream."

Nancy is a kidney transplant recipient (her husband was her living donor), a
thyroid cancer survivor, and an Army veteran. She is currently working on the
sequel to Pigsty Princess, called Questionable Queen. www.nancysbrandt.com

BLURB:In a country
where Elemental Sensitivities determine a person's place in society, Mariana,
fourth child of King Jonathan and Queen Alexandria, was born an Insensitive.
She is given the made up title of Progenna, because she can't be in line for
the throne and therefore, can't be a Princess. All her life, she is reminded
that she isn't quite good enough. When her father decides she is to marry Pir
Leo Valentine, an eighty-four year old man with a scar across his face that
took his eye and only one hand, she runs away from the palace.

Orlando of Talla is a pig farmer and former soldier who served the King until
he watched his Sovereign burn an entire harbor town rather than lose a battle.
Now he tries to live a quiet life while leading a band of rebels who steal from
the nobility to bring prisoners home from that war.

Orlando is also the bastard son of a nobleman, and therefore, he has a
Sensitivity, one of Blood that allows him to feel the Sensitivities of others.

He finds the injured Progenna in the forest and immediately realizes that the
stories about Mariana aren't true. Rather than being an Insensitive, Mariana
may be the most powerful Sensitive in Valborough.

AMAZONDIANA COSBYA retired Navy Chief,
Diana Cosby is an international bestselling author of Scottish medieval
romantic suspense.Books in her
award-winning MacGruder Brothers series are translated in five languages.Diana has spoken at the Library of Congress,
Lady Jane’s Salon in NYC, and appeared in Woman’s Day, on USA Today’s romance
blog, “Happy Ever After,” MSN.com, Atlantic County Women Magazine, and Texoma
Living Magazine.

After her career in the
Navy, Diana dove into her passion – writing romance novels. With 34 moves
behind her, she was anxious to create characters who reflected the amazing
cultures and people she’s met throughout the world.With the release of her first two books in
her new Scottish medieval The Oath Trilogy, An Oath Taken and An Oath Broken,
both which hit bestseller lists in the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom, as
well as the release of the e Box Set of the MacGruder Brothers series, she is
now preparing for the release of the last book in The Oath trilogy, An Oath
Sworn on 23 December, 2015!Diana looks forward to
the years of writing ahead and meeting the amazing people who will share this
journey. www.dianacosby.com

BLURB: Colyne MacKerran is on a mission for his king, and he’s well aware
that spies are lying in wait for him everywhere. Wounded en route, he
escapes his attackers and is aided by an alluring Frenchwoman…whose
explanation for her presence in the Highlands rings false. Even if she saved
his life, he cannot trust her with his secrets. But he won’t leave her to the mercy of brigands, either—and as they race for the coast, he can’t help but wonder if her kiss is as passionate as she is.With nothing
in common but their honor, Colyne and Marie face a dangerous journey to
safety through the untamed Scottish landscape—and their own reckless hearts… AMAZONGWEN HERNANDEZwas a manufacturing engineer and programmer before she turned to writing
romantic suspense. She’s also the author of Scrivener For Dummies and
teaches Scrivener (writing software) to writers all over the world.

She
loves to travel, read, jog, practice Kung Fu, and explore the Boston area where
she currently lives with her Air Force husband, two teenage boys, and a lazy
golden retriever.
www.gwenhernandez.comMessage: Happy Veterans Day! As a former military brat (Army and Navy), and a
current Air Force spouse, I’ve been surrounded by honorable, self-sacrificing
men and women my entire life. My own personal heroes. I honor them in the best
way I know how: writing about them. To all veterans—and those still
serving—thank you!

BLURB:

Rescuing a kidnapped aid worker from St. Isidore’s dangerous rebels is just
another day at work for former pararescueman Dan Molina. But his mission falls
apart when the woman—who once shattered his heart—refuses to leave the
island.

Alexa Alyssandratos can’t return to her life as a nurse on the
hurricane-ravaged Caribbean island, but she won't leave until she’s certain the
orphans she cared for—especially one sick little girl—are safe from the rebels.
Denied their ransom, a would-be dictator and his soldiers are hunting Alexa, and
Dan is the only person who can protect her. Old passions reignite as she and Dan
race to save the children before they disappear forever. AMAZON

HEATHER ASHBY is a Navy veteran who writes military
romantic suspense with Major Christopher Bergeron, USMC, (Ret.) In thanksgiving
for her Army son’s safe return from war, she donates 50% of her royalties to
Fisher House Foundation, which provides free family lodging at military
hospitals. Suzanne Brockmann says, “My readers will love Heather Ashby!” (P.S.
My handsome son is my cover model :-)) www.heatherashby.com

BLURB:

With 7.5 tons of World Trade Center
steel melted into her bow, what if there are more souls aboard the USS New
York than the sailors and Marines stationed there? And what if those souls
can help the troops defeat al-Qaeda this time?

When Royal Navy officer Gwyn Pritchard reports for
exchange duty aboard USS New York, she’s the only person who sees 9/11
spirits roaming the decks. The daughter of a famous psychic, Gwyn learns they
must complete a mission in order to pass to the other side. The sole survivor of
an IED blast in Afghanistan, Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Adam Connor has his
own issues. But when he discovers that the British officer sees ghosts aboard
their ship, he becomes her confidant—and lover.

Passions rise to fever pitch when the New
York rushes to liberate British and American hostages in North Africa.
Can the spirits gather the right intelligence to help the Marines save the
prisoners? Can Gwyn help the ghosts move on to the light? Can Adam and Gwyn find
the love they’ve searched the world over for? AMAZON

I am an author, a contest winner, a teacher, an editor, a critiquer, an online writing class instructor, a traveler, a hopeless romantic, and an optimist. I write romantic suspense and contemporary romance for Decadent Publishing!

Alexa, My sincere thanks for having me as a guest today as we celebrate Veteran's Day. I'd like to offer my sincere thanks to all who serve or have served along with their families for the challenges they face(d) to ensure we are free. Take care and God bless.Sincerely,

We apparently had the same idea - I featured authors who write romances about military heroes and heroines and donate a portion of their royalties to veteran benefits on my monthly newsletter that came out yesterday. Nice post and now I've got a few new books to go check out.